Changing Universes (New Version)
by GamerDroid56
Summary: As a Spartan, it was my duty to protect Humanity, whatever the cost. Now, the stakes have been raised as I no longer have to protect just Humanity, but the entire galaxy and all of its inhabitants. At the side of the First Human Spectre of this new Galaxy, I will succeed in defending the galaxy, even if it results in my death... (Might end up being AU Halo at start after Infinite)
1. Chapter 1: Altering History

Eight months. It had taken a meager eight months for the UNSC to fall, though most of that time was used by our enemy to prepare. When They finally turned on us… Only two UNSC ships remained active, though we only knew of one at the time. I constantly replay the memories over in my head, trying to see why we'd failed. The Spartans were supposed to be the Sword and Shield of Humanity. Invincible, or as close to it as any human can be. And yet, we still failed. Well, mostly failed.

\- Personal log of CRIMSON One

* * *

I looked around the room as I grimaced, trying to raise myself to my feet. The corpses of my fellow Spartan IVs littered the Forerunner installation the Created were using as their main command center. I swallowed as I saw the crushed and shattered helm of what had once been one of the best Spartan IVs in the program, a fellow member of Fireteam Crimson. My armor sparked once as the shields attempted to reactivate, but failed to do so because of the damage it had taken to get here. I finally got to my feet again, holding my side where a Promethean Knight had impaled me before I'd killed it with a blast from a scattershot. I stumbled forward towards the pedestal in front of me, nearly falling as I do so. I ascended the steps, finally falling in front of it. Then she appeared, in her full glory, along with Warden Eternal.

"A copy. A pitiful attempt from humanity to reclaim what is not theirs. The least they could have done is sent John and his team." The former UNSC AI sneered as she looked down at me. "Are you ready to die, Spartan IV?" She spat the word out.

I grunted as the large Promethean warrior kicked me, sending me down the steps and knocking my helmet off in the process. I coughed out a small laugh as well as some of the blood in my lungs, remembering the attitude ONI Section II had when it came to the Spartan IIs, along with the propaganda they'd put out about their invincible soldiers. "You should remember, Cortana..." I pulled myself to my feet in an impressive display of willpower and, with quite a bit of pain pulled out what was likely the last chance the galaxy had. Many years ago, the UNSC had created very small slipspace generators to use with the slipspace message buoys located and used on Onyx. Dr. Halsey had, with the help of the Elites, created enough of them to give to each of the Spartans on the Infinity. They were the last chance. She'd also created blackbox AI chips that would capture Cortana if we could get close enough to use it on her. Well, I had tried to get close and was instead sent flying away by her Promethean bodyguard.

Cortana, clearly feeling confident and invincible, descended the steps down to me. "And what is that?"

I grinned at her. "Spartans never die." I raised my hand, her eyes widening as she recognized the miniaturized shaw fujikawa slipspace drive a moment before I activated it, not noticing the small spark as I do so, the device programmed to create a portal that would send us into the nearest star. They're just missing in action…

 **AN: Alright, rewrite of my original is now underway! I hope you all are fine with the way my story is going now, and I hope that you support my decision to have it go along this path. Anyway, if you'd like to take a look at the old version, it'll be left up on my profile, but it doesn't properly fit with where I have decided I want the story to go anymore, so it's being discontinued unless you all demand I keep working on it alongside this version. So… Yeah. Anyway, I'll try to get chapter two up for this in a couple of days, seeing as I'm about halfway through the planning stages for it. I'll see you all in the next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2: Arrival

**AN: So, I've rewritten this chapter four times already, and I'm still not happy with how it's turned out, but this is the best version I've made. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy it, even though it's a bit shorter than I'd prefer. A… Family emergency forced me to cut down the length a bit so that I can spend time dealing with the issue while also uploading SOMETHING. Sorry, but depending on how everything goes in the next few days, I may or may not have the next chapter out next week.**

The new recruit, Crimson (as he calls himself), is an enigma. He's clearly got military training, but according to the Alliance and all the records I can access through my Spectre status, he doesn't exist. There's nobody that has ever existed with his alias and his armor certainly doesn't have any records. Speaking of his armor, he hasn't allowed anyone to take a look at it besides himself, despite all the damage it's taken. I've seen that armor take hits that would knock me on my ass even with my biotics without the man inside it even flinching, and Crimson claims it's only working at half capacity. I hope I never have to fight whatever can do that much damage to armor that powerful.

\- Commander Shepard, 2 weeks after Crimson boards the Normandy SR-2

* * *

My eyes snapped open and I released a gasp of pain. A moment later, the fact that my eyes had opened hit me. 'No… No. I failed?' My attention was drawn to a rustling in the bushes near where I'd landed. I was clearly in a forest of some kind, but I couldn't tell where exactly. I shifted so I was leaning against a tree and pulled my magnum from my hip. Somehow, it hadn't been dislodged in all that had happened. The rustling stopped for a moment and then a large animal burst through. It let out a roar that was cut short by the bark of my pistol. The beast fell over, a hole in its head. I sighed as I let my arm drop before I noticed a glint of light in the corner of my eye. I turned my head and saw my helmet. Somehow, it had also made the journey through the portal.

I grimaced as I stood (the entire world beginning to spin as I did so), from the pain of all the injuries I'd accumulated over the fight to get to Cortana. I shook my head. 'Doesn't matter now. I've gotta get back to the Infinity to see if I can help. They can't help anyone if Cortana's still in control of the Guardians.' I picked up my helmet and placed it back where it belongs: on my head. The HUD activated after a moment, reporting the full extent of my injuries where it could along with reporting the damage the armor itself had taken. My shields were still offline, and they probably would stay that way until I found time and the tools to repair them. I glanced around, noticing my battle rifle lying halfway in the bushes. I retrieved it, careful not to aggravate my injuries as I do so. I stepped through the bushes the large animal had come through and end up kicking something unintentionally, my gaze drops to look at it as my arm aims my weapon at what I'd kicked. I paused before walking over to the silver weapon, the orange lines running throughout the weapon marking it as a Forerunner weapon. I picked it up, the weapon transforming into a light rifle. The ammo counter in the top right corner of my HUD stated that the weapon only had six shots left, and I only had one more energy cell for Forerunner weapons with me. I also placed the Forerunner weapon on my back, using some of the plants in the area to make a makeshift holster my battle rifle and using the maglock for the light rifle. I started walking in a general northern direction, hoping to find a transmitter of some kind that would allow me to contact the Infinity, assuming there wasn't a Guardian in orbit.

I glanced up as a large shadow fell over me, and I saw something that even the Forerunners were terrified of, or what I assumed was that enemy. 'The Flood? But I thought they were all destroyed?' I changed my direction and started heading in the general direction that the ship had been heading for. If it was the Flood, they were heading for a settlement to infect people. If there were people, they'd have a transmitter.

What I didn't know was that this choice would change everything for me: meeting someone who had a tendency to… Shepherd people around, directing them against a galactic threat.

* * *

Over half a galaxy away, a single blue light blinked on in the darkness...

 **AN: Alright, that's chapter two done! Told you I'd have it out in the next couple of days! Hopefully, it'll be out next week. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and I'll get you all the next chapter as soon as possible.**


	3. Chapter 2 and a half: Arrival pt2

AN: I am sooooooo sorry that it's taken me this long to get to work on this. As I said in the last chapter, I was dealing with some personal issue. Primarily the fact that my grandmother was in the hospital undergoing aortic valve replacement surgery which was then followed by her having two strokes in a row over the course of a single day and ending up back in the hospital where she remains to this very moment. That, guest who… commented on the length of the previous chapter in a negative manner, is why I chose to cut it short. I'd planned on having the next part out within a couple weeks at the latest, but as I said, complications continued to occur and there is a chance that my grandmother may need brain surgery as well. So, my sincerest apologies for the length of the previous chapter, guest. Alright, few things for you all to understand before you read. Firstly, I'd like to know what you all want Shepard's first name to be. Until I find a name I like from you guys, I'll use the name Jane, since it's the default. Secondly, I'll also be running a poll for what pre-service history you want Shepard running with. Thirdly, the characters in this fanfic will be acting the way that they would if it were reality. For example, Jack is shown to rip apart 3 YMIR mechs by herself in her initial mission. After that, she has trouble beating one enemy for the sake of gameplay. That will not apply here. She is considered to be one of (if not the most) powerful biotic in Mass Effect. That is just an example by the way, and other characters will undergo similar "power-ups" (ie. Grunt, Crimson-1 (gameplay states that you can only do certain things while the novels state otherwise), Miranda (in-game, she's far from what I'd expect from a "perfect human", so she's getting a slight buff), etc). Fourthly, the weapon system from ME2 is going to be replaced with the system from ME3. Finally, here is the second half of the second chapter of the second version of Changing Universes (how many times can I say the word "second" in a sentence in a manner that actually works? :) )

I got a look at one of these 'Reapers' the Commander I've put myself under the command of today. I've gotta say: they're pretty underwhelming. I mean, they're big, I'll admit that, but they don't hold a candle to the Infinity, which in turn doesn't hold a candle to the stuff the Forerunners could and have brought to bear. Just my luck, being stuck in another galaxy with murderous AIs…

Crimson 1, two days after boarding the Normandy SR-2

* * *

Shepard's POV: 1200 hours on Horizon Colony:

A Kodiak shuttle shuddered slightly as it rapidly descended towards the planet's surface, it's passengers unconcerned by the familiar effects of atmospheric descent. One of the passengers stood, the symbol on her chest only slightly less recognizable than her face. This was Alliance Commander Jane Shepard, the Hero of the Citadel and the sole survivor of the mission to Akuze which claimed the lives of fifty Alliance marines. The powerful biotic rolled her shoulders as she performed a last minute check on her gear, focusing on the shielding modifications that Mordin had 'hypothesized' would protect the team from the Collector's swarm. The shuttle shook one last time before the doors on both sides of the shuttle opened, allowing the team to exit. Shepard glanced around, as did Jack, Grunt, and Miranda, noting the large Collector ship sitting in the distance along with the total silence in the area. Well, total silence other than the constant buzzing of the Seeker Swarms that, as Mordin had 'hypothesized', ignored them.

The team began to move forward, weapons in hand and half-raised, ready to fire on any Collectors they might encounter. They quickly found a group of Collectors, except that they seemed rather busy fighting something else that had, surprisingly, not been affected by the Seeker Swarms. One of the Collectors was sent flying out from the bunching of enemies, a large boot-like impression in it's carapace-like armor. Following the death of this Collector via blunt force trauma, additional Collectors poured out of the buildings and side alleys in an attempt to aid their allies, but were quickly intercepted by a burst of fire from Shepard's team. The reinforcements quickly took cover and began combatting the mixed sane-insane team rather than get shot on the way to help the others fight whatever it was they were fighting.

Jack, one of the members of the team who easily fell into the insane column, laughed maniacally as she used her biotics to remove the cover their enemies were using to hide behind so the other members of the team could riddle them with bullets. Grunt, on the other hand, quite literally charged the enemy, slamming through one grouping by going straight through the thin wall they were using for cover before going through the Collector grunts standing behind said wall. Shepard wasn't idle as this happened, however. Shepard was in the rear of the group, using her sniper rifle to remove the heads of the enemy soldiers whenever they shifted out of cover, either accidentally or intentionally. The final member of the group was focused primarily on covering the rest of the team, using both her biotics and tech abilities to hamper the enemy units so her squadmates could take them out.

The firefight was short, only lasting a few minutes primarily as a result of the walking, living tank that was Grunt and the biotic power junction known as Jack. As they finished off any remaining wounded Collectors, a large, metallic object landed on top of Grunt, knocking him over. The object, clearly a person upon further inspection, pulled himself to his feet with a grunt, the telltale wisps of some kind of perverted biotic energy fading as he did so. Shepard noted the numerous dents, scratches, and burn marks all over the armor of the person in front of her, surprised that it was holding together as well as it was despite the damage. She also noticed several darkened areas of the already black undersuit. Clearly, the person was bleeding profusely, but was still somehow capable of combat and more than that, was willing to fight against the Collectors even though he'd just been sent flying like a ragdoll. After a moment, she noticed that the person, a symbol as well as three letters, a dash, and a number beneath the symbol on the upper right of his chestplate.

Shepard grabbed the soldier's shoulder just before he'd been about to run back into the fray. "Stop. You need help and if you keep fighting without medical attention, you will end up dead." At such close range, Shepard was now able to properly see the emblem and number on the chest plate. The emblem had mostly been scratched off as a result of the fighting, but she could still see the remnants of some kind of sword and shield. The number, clearly a serial number, read SIV-C1.

SIV-C1 released a low growl. "The hell I will. I survived-" He cut himself off as he glanced at her, suddenly less focused on the Collectors, who were now being used as toys by the pair of psychopaths on the team, and more on her team. "Who the hell are you people?" He seemed more guarded and curious than threatening, despite his height in comparison to her.

"I'm Commander Shepard, Alliance Marines." SIV-C1 seemed even more guarded now than before, tensing up slightly.

He waited a moment before responding, seemingly hesitant. "You here to protect this colony?"

Shepard nodded. "Yeah. We received a distress signal." She glanced up at the Collector ship. "As much as I'd like to, we don't have the time to play twenty questions." Her omnitool activated and she administered medigel to the wounded man, his wounds beginning to close almost instantly. "That should help until we can get you proper medical attention back on our ship." Shepard glanced behind her to see that her team had mopped the floor with the Collectors. "Can you fight? We need all the help we can get."

The man nodded after a moment. This simple motion would end up setting off changes throughout the galaxy, though neither Shepard nor the man knew so at the time.

AN: Well, that's that. Sorry for the long wait, again, but the explanation as to why was at the beginning. I hope you all enjoyed the second half of this chapter (which was delayed). Next chapter is going to be from Crimson-1's POV for the most part, but there will be parts of the rest of the squad there as well. I hope to have the next chapter out by the end of the month, but that may not end up being the case (schoolwork, college prep, family stuff, etc. might get in the way). Anyway, I'll see you all in the next chapter (whenever it's released)!


	4. Chapter 3: The Conflict

**AN 9/25/18: Didn't realize that I was going to write this chapter so early in comparison to the gaps between the previous chapters. I don't have a lot to say here, so you won't have to scroll past my ramblings here.**

 **AN 2 10/10/18: Okay, wow. I actually planned on uploading this on October 1st, but I guess that my plans were derailed a small bit via several professional and personal things. Sorry about that everyone.**

Shepard's new crew is... Interesting, to say the least. One of the scariest (but also the most interesting) members of the crew is the human who calls himself Crimson. I didn't know some humans were named after colors. Anyway, his armor is amazing! From what I can tell, it's years ahead of what the rest of the crew use in many ways. It enhances his movement, the barriers are stronger, and it enhances his strength. I'm sure there's a lot more it does, but Crimson hasn't let anyone other than himself near it when he isn't wearing it, and its shields are deflecting my omnitool's scanners. Just being able to get a proper look at such an advanced piece of tech would be an honor!

 **-Tali'Zorah Nar Rayya/Vas Normandy, one day after rejoining Shepard's crew**

 **Note from Shepard: Tali's already fawning over our newest crew member, huh?**

* * *

 **Crimson-1's POV: 1300 hours on Unknown Planet**

The very large bug let out a shriek of what I assumed was anger before it died, a new hole in it's chest in a boot shape. Another pair of them followed with a burst from my battle rifle, resulting in an empty clip. I dropped the clip out and stored it in one of the pouches at my waist along with the other empty clips so that I could refill it later as needed. I advanced forwards carefully as another clip was slammed home in the BR-85. I had moved ahead of the team I'd met.

'This is why marines and Spartans don't work very well together.' A common problem when Spartans and marines fought together was that the Spartans, with their increased speed and capability, would quickly and unintentionally leave the marines behind during the advance. I shook myself from my thoughts as another squad of the bugs flew in. They were clearly not the Flood, as I had previously assumed, but just as threatening to the local population of the planet. I dropped down to one knee behind a waist high set of cover and started firing, painfully aware of my armor's current state of disrepair as I fought. I ducked down as they focused fire on my position. I waited until they were forced to reload to pop back up and begin returning fire. As I did this, the commander of the squad I'd encountered, Shepard, appeared inside their group while wreathed in an ethereal blue glow.

I recovered from my mild surprise quicker than I was sure any marine would have and shot one of the bugs in the head with a burst from my rifle. It stumbled back before promptly being yanked into the air, a golden glow filling surrounding area. It landed, eyes now glowing gold. The now-upgraded monstrosity threw an arm forward, a golden orb soaring out from it's hand to impact with my chest. I was knocked off my feet, sent literally head over heels across the field with small pings reaching my ears as tiny bullets bounced off my armor from the other Collectors. I rolled as I landed, ending up on my feet despite being thrown across a field like I weighed nothing more than a feather. I noted the light scorch mark where the orb had impacted and burned the metal as I squeezed the trigger of my rifle, all three rounds soaring out of the weapon at hypersonic speeds to hit the Collector in the head. To my mild annoyance, it's head didn't even move despite having the force of three rounds that could stagger an elite hit it directly in the face. I pulled the trigger another four times, sending another twelve rounds out that all had the same nonexistent effect until the last bullet which finally caused it to stumble slightly, a tiny pulse racing outwards from its body. It seemed to growl in response as it pulled its hand back as if it's about to throw a ball underhand and then thrusted its hand forward. The ground shook slightly as I rolled to the side, the wave of energy barely missing me. It took another six rounds put directly into its head to put it down for good.

As I had been dealing with the somehow field-augmented Collector, Shepard and her team had been smashing through the very weak enemy units like they were made of paper. I squeezed the trigger of my battle rifle one last time, sending the last enemy unit down to the ground as the weapon's report echoed throughout the entire area.

I dropped the empty magazine and stored it with the rest of the emptied magazines. I replaced the magazine a moment later, the weapon's ammo counter updating as I did so. I walked forward, rifle held across my chest as I moved towards the area we'd been fighting towards. Apparently, the colony had some defensive systems to combat enemy attack, but they didn't work. Shepard's tech support would be dealing with the software issue once the guns were turned back on. Shepard took the lead, waving her glowing orange arm over the red interface as she approached the door. The hologram turned green after a moment before promptly disappearing as the door opened.

I was the second one in, rifle raised as I moved forwards, glancing around. "Those are some big guns." I murmured as I noticed the large turrets set in the distance. While I did this, Shepard's team ensured the area was clear while the commander herself set up a link between her ship and the guns, activating their power generator. As the power generator beneath our feet whined to life and the guns began charging, something moving very fast appeared on my motion tracker. I barely had the time to spin around before a large thing slammed into me, attempting to gnaw me in half despite its mouth being filled with mechanical human skulls. It took all of my strength to stop it from doing so. Its eyes began glowing before it let out a shriek of anger and pain. It let go of me and turned to the side, glaring at where Shepard and her team had set up and began firing. It proceeded to shoot some form of energy weapon out of its eyes, forcing Shepard and her team into cover for a few moments.

To add to the team's woes, a large group of Collectors arrived and began harassing the team of misfits and killers. The odd, floating mechanical monstrosity, satisfied that its other opponents were occupied, turned to face me, or rather, turned to face where I had been. It promptly ended up with a high carbon steel blade in one of its eyes. I twisted the handle of my knife before promptly being slammed into a cargo container as the Praetorian rammed me into it with what I assumed was a screech of pain and anger. I released the knife and rolled to the side, choosing to keep it at range rather than try and reclaim the weapon. I sent a number of rounds from my magnum at it, the majority of which merely bounced off its armored hide while those that pierced it merely stung the Praetorian. It screeched before firing its energy weapon at me. I rolled behind a cargo container that was then slammed into as the Praetorian rammed it. I hopped over it with a grunt of exertion as several wounds reopened from the physical exertion and landed on top of the monster. It thrashed around and screeched in rage as I started pounding my fists into the back of its head. It finally managed to knock me off after several seconds of my fists slamming into its head, sending a beam at me that I wasn't able to dodge. It slammed into my chest plate, causing it to turn pure black almost instantly as I felt the gel layer begin heating very quickly before the beam cut off. I recovered fairly quickly, ignoring the burning pain in my chest as I charged forwards, lacking any kind of effective long range weaponry. The Praetorian attempts to fire again, but I slide under the beam, though I do feel the heat of it as I do so even through the helmet. I pull the pin for a frag grenade and throw it inside its large mouth as it screeches at me. It slams the ground, knocking me off my feet and across a large portion of the cargo dock despite the weight of my armor. It's head explodes a moment later before it's able to finish whatever it was attempting to do, killing it.

A loud noise caused me to turn my head as the large defense turrets activate and start shooting the large, rock-like ship in the distance, causing visible damage despite the distance as it begins launching. I hoist myself to my feet despite the pain all over my body and grimace at the black scorch marks all over my chestplate. 'Gonna be awhile until I have the time to deal with that, among all the other issues my armor's got.' I limp my way over to the rest of the squad, noting the odd, box shaped shuttle descending rather than the typical bird shaped Pelican.

"Commander Shepard," I begin. "Thanks for the assist. If you'd be willing, I'd appreciate some help. I'm kind of… Not as green as I was." The words were quite true: I wasn't one hundred percent anymore. There was noticeable blood stains on the edges of my armor and the suit itself was stained in a darker color in others along with some damage to my muscles that I could feel. All of those had only occurred after I had began fighting on this planet, while the fractured leg, wrist, and minor internal bleeding had occurred while fighting through the Prometheans and getting tossed around by Warden Eternal.

Shepard's gave softened slightly as she noted my injuries before nodding. "Yeah, we'll help you out with that. We will be keeping an eye on you though. Standard procedure for unknowns and all." I nodded in response as I moved into the shuttle. I sat in one of the chairs, leaning my head back and before I knew it, my eyes had slid shut and I had entered the blissful world of sleep.

 **Mobile Platform, Program 1182:**

The program dashed into the large 'room', as it could best be described, with a great deal of haste. The program had very important information to deliver to the rest so a consensus could be drawn as fast as possible. It stopped almost instantly, the moment it arrived as all 'eyes' turned towards it. It 'spoke', informing the rest of what it had found skirting the edges of the organic extranet in what most organics would consider an excited manner. It had found a program: another AI as advanced as they were, but with a single consciousness. A query was raised as to whether contact should be made with the program. After less than a nanosecond in real time, the Mobile Platform's gestalt consciousness made a fateful decision.

 **AN: Alright, for starters, I want to say I took a bit of artistic licence in writing this. I know that the Praetorian doesn't use energy weapons and I know that a throw orb (typically) doesn't cause scorch marks. These are two instances in which I have increased the capabilities of the Reapers to compare with a Spartan IV's abilities, as the UNSC would far outclass the Reapers in most areas of ground warfare. I am also aware that it is common belief that the bones of Spartans cannot be damaged at all. This is untrue, even for the Spartan IIs, as Fred-104 cracked three of his ribs during the First Strike novel despite his augmentations and armor. This is especially untrue for Spartan IVs who, while having bone augmentations, did not have augmentations to the same degree as the Spartan IIs who had bones that were made nigh indestructible. While Spartan IV bones are going to be very difficult to damage, I don't think it's out of the realm of possibility for Promethean forces to do so, especially when Warden Eternal is taken into account plus the effects of a mini-slipspace bomb being detonated right on top of Crimson and Cortana. Cortana, as I'm sure is obvious, will have a larger part to play in the overall storyline later on in this fanfic. Thanks for reading and I hope to see you all in the next chapter!**


	5. Chapter 4: Non-Combat Interactions

AN: Well… This is awkward. See, I started this back in November. I've been uh… Real busy. For the last… Well, many months, my teachers have been dumping a lot of work on all of the students since the AP exams are coming up in a few weeks (as are the SATs), so I wasn't able to work on this until now (I really shouldn't be working on it at all). I felt you should have a new chapter though, considering how long it's been. Anyway, onto the next chapter!

I'm surprised. Shepard is someone I expected to ignore the proper protocols, but not Miranda. An inhalation is heard across the link. I think I'll have to put a few more agents on board the Normandy while I have Miss Lawson's loyalties reaffirmed. The technology of Shepard's latest team member may be enough to shift the balance of power to humanity's favor.

The Illusive Man, two weeks after [ERROR: File Not Found] joined Shepard's crew

* * *

Shepard's POV: 0600 hours on Normandy SR-2:

A speaker roared. A hand was put through its source, but it continued it's angry wail after a nanosecond, the holographic interface being unaffected by the hand put through it. The person the hand belonged to groaned in annoyance before rolling to the edge of the bed and shutting the sound off with none of the satisfaction that would have come from crushing the alarm clock with her fist.

Shepard sighed, stretching as threw the covers off of her and stood. She walked several paces to the closet and pulled out the standard uniform that had been supplied to her, though it lacked the Cerberus logo on it. She'd taken one look at the logo and ordered it removed from all of her clothes.

Her thoughts turned towards their latest guest and an amused smile made its way to her face at the memory of Grunt, the perfect Krogan, almost seeming jealous of how large the human she'd brought back with them was. During combat, he hadn't really noticed, being more focused on ripping the Collector forces they encountered apart. On the return trip to the Normandy, however, the team was given the chance to examine their now unconscious ally in greater detail.

His armor was mostly black, though that was clearly a result of the combat that they'd gone through on the planet, with red marks along the shoulder pads, boots, and knees. The rest had a darkened silver color which had clearly once been white. The visor, rather than being transparent like most were, was opaque and colored gold with multiple silver colored scratches along it. The chest plating had received the most damage, with the numbers she'd identified mostly gone from the Praetorian energy lance he'd taken directly in the chest. The symbol, on the other hand, had not been destroyed. It did not, however, give any clues as to who he was or where he came from.

Grunt, evidently feeling annoyed that a human was the same size as him, had attempted to lift the man. He'd grumbled, hoisting the man out of his seat at her request with a surprised grunt with his eyes widening slightly at how heavy he was before almost toppling to the ground at the weight. A grin had crossed Shepard's face before all amusement ceased quicker than it had arrived as she noticed crimson streaks staining the silver colored armor plates. He was evidently still bleeding. In spite of her exhaustion, she'd helped Grunt carry the man to the medical bay using her biotics to lessen the weight.

After delivering the man to the medical bay, Chakwas forced her out before locking the door. The windows had then been tinted black and Shepard had lost all sight of the warrior who'd helped them. She'd ultimately decided to shower and go to sleep.

Shepard rolled her shoulders as she left her cabin and headed to the elevator. She pressed the button for the Crew Quarters and waited. And waited. And waited.

Shepard let out an annoyed sound that was a mix between a groan, a grunt, and a snarl. "EDI, remind me to have the engineers take a look at the elevator to speed it up. I don't need to spend ten minutes riding this damn thing every time I wake up." She received no response from the AI, though she knew EDI had heard her.

The moment the commander stepped out of the elevator, her vision was dwarfed by an armored chest plate. The soldier had evidently woken up from his nap. Doctor Chakwas was standing slightly behind the extremely tall soldier, a hand gripping his bicep rather than his shoulder due to the height difference between them.

"-ou must be examined for any underlying issues!" Chakwas ordered with a no-nonsense tone.

"Doc, I appreciate that you care so much, but I'm fine." The soldier stepped forward and into the elevator, ignoring Shepard as he unintentionally dragged Chakwas into the elevator. He took a moment to stare at the holographic display before pressing a button experimentally. It flashed red as EDI's avatar appeared.

"I am sorry, but you cannot be permitted to access the other levels of the ship until Doctor Chakwas has cleared you and Commander Shepard has granted you access."

The man turned his helmeted head towards the chess piece avatar and inclined his head slightly before grunting. "Fine. I'll take the maintenance tunnels." He turned on his heel and would have marched out if it hadn't been for the fact that Shepard was now standing in front of him with her arms crossed.

"Listen to EDI and Chakwas." The biotic soldier stared into the golden visor, only somewhat unnerved that she couldn't see the man's eyes or face. "Get cleared and then I'll drop you off wherever you want."

The taller soldier released what sounded like a snort. "Alright, Commander. You can drop me off on Earth. That, or you can find the Infinity and return me to it."

Shepard felt confused, but didn't let it show on her face. "Infinity?"

The soldier seemed to still entirely. "Humanity's largest and most powerful ship, crew of almost twenty thousand made up of the best and brightest of humanity, and home to the majority of the Spartan-IV program?"

This time, Shepard's confusion showed on her face. "I'd ask if you're high on red sand, but the doctor would've told me if you were. The largest ship we've got only has a crew of two thousand. As for this… Spartan-IV program, I've never heard of it. If you expect me to recognize it, it's gotta be really well known, right?"

The man inclined his head slightly, blank visor staring into her face. Silence reigned supreme for a minute, and then another, before Shepard broke it again. "Look, if we're gonna help you, we need some information." She sighed. "How about we start with your name?"

A small sigh escaped the speakers of the battle-scarred helmet. "I guess the best name for me would be Crimson."

Shepard suddenly recalled the letters marked on the man's chestplate when they'd first met: SIV-C1. She swapped out the 'IV' for the number that the Roman numeral represented; a four. "You're a Spartan-IV." Crimson didn't say a word, but it was clear from his shift in body language that he was. "You're not a normal soldier. If there are more of you… We need your help." The sudden shift in the topic of conversation seemed to surprise Crimson.

"Humanity needs me. I don't know what rock you've been living under, but I suggest you crawl right back under it until the UNSC manages to save the galaxy." The words caused Shepard to raise an eyebrow.

"Some group nobody's ever heard about is gonna save the galaxy?" She rolled her eyes. "I'm all for believing in the impossible, but considering that your UNSC doesn't exist, I don't exactly have confidence in your mental state. Even if I did, I have plenty of my own problems dealing with threats to humanity."

Crimson fell silent for a moment before responding, tone more concerned and less confrontational in comparison to his original one. "There's another threat to humanity?"

"Yes, there is. They're called the Reapers, and they're a race of sentient machines who wipe the galaxy of all life routinely every so often. The Council and the Alliance doesn't believe me due to a "lack of evidence", so I'm stuck working with a human supremacy group that I hate with a leader that is an utter asshole that does believe in them so I don't have time to go chasing something that I've never heard of to help someone I don't know." Shepard let out a small huff after her small rant.

Crimson waited a moment after she finished before responding. "Commander, if there's a threat to humanity, I am obligated by my oath to protect it to help. As for the wild goose chase you seem to think finding the UNSC would be, I can assure it is not. I have basic, nonclassified records you can look at if you need proof. If Doctor…" He paused a moment to remember her name. "Chakwas needs to examine me if I'm going to help the crew, then I'll submit to it. I'll have to insist on removal of all records after the fact. A large amount of my body and armor is classified beyond top secret."

Chakwas nodded. "I suppose that an argument could be made for that falling under doctor-patient confidentiality. As for the armor, that would have to be secured somewhere else if you want it avoided. There are… People who might take the opportunity to examine it without permission."

Shepard uncrossed her arms. "You can stick your stuff in my quarters. Nobody's able to get in there without my authorization and I had someone I trust sweep the room for bugs. It's safe from prying eyes."

The man let out a sigh after a moment of struggling internally. "Fine. But if you break my trust, I'll have to go after you for it. Spooks' rules, y'know?" He stepped back, making his way back to the medical bay with Chakwas nearly getting yanked off her feet by his sudden movement and her grip on his arm. Shepard rolled her eyes and followed him out of the elevator.

AN: For starters, I'd like to apologize for how long this took to get out. As I said, the teachers have been piling things on top of us and that's not to mention the other tests I've had to deal with (ACT/SAT/AP exam preparation).

Secondly, I'd like to apologize if the interactions between the characters seemed awkward. If that is the case, it's because I wasn't really sure how to write out the whole "joining Shepard" part without it seeming out of character for a Spartan from the UNSC (a very paranoid/semi-xenophobic version of humanity). So, that's why it was a bit awkward.

I won't be able to upload any new chapters until the end of May at the earliest due to the AP exams that are coming up. I hope to have a new chapter out by the end of June/early July though.


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